Ogbia language

Last updated
Ogbia
Ogbinya
Native to Nigeria
Region Bayelsa State, Rivers State
Native speakers
390,000 (2020) [1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 ogb
Glottolog ogbi1239

Ogbia (AgBeya or Abaya) is the most spoken Central Delta language of Nigeria. It is spoken by over 200,000 people.

Contents

Blench (2019) lists varieties as Kolo (Agholo), Oloiḅiri, and Anyama. The Anyama variety remains unattested and has no data. [2]

Phonology

Consonants

Bilabial Labio-
dental
Alveolar Palatal Velar Labio-
velar
Nasal mnɲŋŋʷ
Plosive/
Affricate
voicelessptkk͡p
voicedbdd͡ʒɡɡ͡b
implosive ɓɗ
Fricative voicelessfs
voicedβvzɣ
Trill r
Approximant ljw

Vowels

Front Central Back
High i iːu uː
Near-high ɪ ɪːʊ ʊː
High-mid e eːə əːo oː
Low-mid ɛ ɛːɔ ɔː
Low a aː

[3] [4]

References

  1. Ogbia at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
  2. Blench, Roger (2019). An Atlas of Nigerian Languages (4th ed.). Cambridge: Kay Williamson Educational Foundation.
  3. Isukul, Caroline (n.d.). A grammar of Agholo [Ogbia].
  4. Kari, Ethelbert Emmanuel (2017). Central Delta languages: An overview. Stellenbosch Papers in Linguistics, Vol. 47. University of Botswana, Botswana. pp. 1–26.